ARTIST ORIGIN STORY: Tim Jaeger

Tim Jaeger graduated with a Bachelors of Arts degree from the Ringling College of Art + Design in 2002, and decided to stick around. He did — and kept busy. Today, Jaeger is a prolific working artist, an assistant at Ringling College's Selby Gallery, and the co-founder of the sARTq artists' collective. When he's not painting or sketching, he's putting his time in as an artists' advocate. He never seems to stop. We asked him what got him started.

What's your artist origin story?
Looking back, I can definably recall the moment I went from student to artist in Sarasota. During my four years in the Fine Art program at what was then called the Ringling School of Art and Design, my job as a student was to listen, observe, explore, research, and experiment with the subjects, mediums, concepts and ideas that were presented to me by my instructors and peers. So I listened. Then one day it hit me: I'm not just studying to be an artist — I am an artist.

You made that mental leap.
Yeah. And the leap can be scary. While I consider myself fortunate to have learned from one of the best fine art programs in the country. I had excellent instructors, but there are some things you just can't learn in the classroom. After graduation, I was in the middle of a whirlwind identity crisis as a now young “artist.” In retrospect, this was a good thing. I knew more, but I had to figure out how to make it work and provide for myself outside the gates of the school.

When did this hit you?
Pretty much the day after graduation. I will never forget that day.

Let me guess. Euphoria passed and reality set in?
Exactly. I looked around. College was over, my friends had moved, class was no longer in session, and I needed a job — badly. I spent a month or two, picking up small commissions and doing a few day jobs here and there. Then one day, I was walking downtown, at the corner of Palm and Main. Sarasota News and Books had a “Help Needed” sign on its door. I went in, and that was it — the reset button was pushed and a new chapter began.

And the title, I assume was "Working Nine to Five"...?
Actually, sometimes work began at 6 a.m. I would receive newspapers and get the coffee brewing. The bookstore was the place where everyone that worked downtown would frequent in the morning and sometimes several times a day. It was like a campfire — a social scene, a “see-and-be-seen” type of place. Three-hour meetings occurred in the café and others would rush in for a specialty newspaper and rush right out. As for me, I sold the newspapers and books, and was right in the middle of all of it — I met everyone and heard it all.

And you absorbed it.
I absorbed everything. Thinking back, the best thing I did was to talk to everyone, listen, and work hard. I also shared my ideas, sketchbook, and invited interested customers to my tiny studio that I shared with another employee, Tobey Albright, an artist who's now based in Chicago. Through this meager but totally fascinating post-college job, I was connected to the central nervous system of Sarasota’s creative community and they supported me and kept me here.

After that?
Allyn Gallup — who's still my friend to this day — hired me to work in his gallery. He introduced me to other artists and the business of selling art and the gallery format. Annie Solomon, the wife of acclaimed Sarasota abstract artist Syd Solomon, took me under her wing. We talked and still talk about the visual history of Sarasota, art and artists, and ideas. She encouraged me, pushed me, and even gave me a posh reception after my first solo exhibition in Sarasota. These were just a couple of the numerous customers I ran into everyday. I found life outside of the college, and I loved it all.

Did work ever get in the way of your art?
No. All this experience fed me new ideas for my work and inspired me more. It made me honest with my work, and myself and encouraged me to pursue my mission as a creative, energetic, young person. Throughout this time, I constantly painted and kept long studio hours. At the same time, I didn't isolate myself. I worked with other artists a lot and participated in everything. All the time. Every chance I had. Eventually, one thing led to another and I found myself after four years leaving that job and moving on to work in art galleries in Sarasota. I will never forget it. Now, 15 years after I first set foot in Sarasota, I've come a full circle. I work for Selby Gallery at what's now called Ringling College of Art and Design. And I paint all the time in my north Sarasota studio.

If you could go back in time and give yourself advice?
That's funny you'd say that. The original bookstore closed. But, sometimes when I'm a customer in any bookstore, I'll see if I can find the old me behind the counter — some young, creative 20-something.

And the advice you'd give ... ?
You don't have one origin story. Every day is an origin story. Eery day, you make a decision to draw or not to draw, pick up the paintbrush, or not. You're constantly choosing to be an artist. If you make that choice and keep going, you're an artist. You do what you have to do to make a living, whatever it is, even if it's selling newspapers. If that's what it takes to make great art, that's what you do. It's never easy. It never should be.

Tim Jaeger's latest series of paintings is currently on display as part of the "Leaning Forward: Looking Back" exhibit at State of the Arts Gallery, 1525 State St., Sarasota. 955-2787.

Last modified: October 11, 2013
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